Night 3: Left For Dead

Grace Peterson, 18, District 8 Female.

Her burns didn't even hurt anymore. All she felt was her throat—her dry, cracking, brittle throat that burned more than any fire ever could. And she knew just how much fire burned. After all, she was covered in bubbling blisters—fresh wounds from the hell she had just escaped from yesterday.

She hadn't drunk water in more than three days. Every lake or river she stumbled upon had seemed to magically dry up, and although there was substantial evidence that water was there recently, there was none. It was as if it were hiding from her, there one moment, then gone the next.

There was no doubt in her mind that this was the Capitol's doing—this was what they saved her for. After what she proclaimed in the Capitol and during the early days of the games, they couldn't just give her a quick death. Dying in a fire would be too easy, undeserving of the hideous rebel girl that she was. Her death needed to be prolonged, drawn out much further than it should be. For the Capitol to be satisfied, she needed to suffer.

However, if they thought she was just going to give up, they were wrong. She'd search for water until her last dying breath; as long as she could help it, the Capitol would never get the satisfaction they craved so viciously. If she was going down, she was going to go down fighting. They wouldn't break her. She won't let them.

All of a sudden, a wave of nausea fell over her. She collapsed to her knees, the world around her spinning like she was on a children's carousel. Opening her mouth to vomit, nothing came out. Only air spilled out—as invisible as the Capitol's cameras that surely were watching her, yet they were there nonetheless. She hadn't eaten in three days. She hadn't drunk water in three days. There was nothing inside her but crimson blood and shriveling organs. She had nothing left to excrete. Only air.

Her body told her to stop—to stay on the ground and die right there. Everything inside her was shouting surrender, yet she won't give up. She needed to show the capitol, even in her dying breaths, she was stronger then they'll ever be. So, she stood to her feet once more and drudged on, searching wishfully for water that no longer existed.

As she walked, a thought breached her mind. What if she stole water from another tribute? She scowled at the sheer thought of it, remembering that stealing went against her morals. Her mother had taught her from a young age that stealing was wrong, and in her heart, she knew it was. However, this was different. She was dying. Surely an exception could be made for a dying girl?

No. She wouldn't do it. She had promised herself the games wouldn't change her, and she'd die the way she went in: a valiant rebel. She'd get water some other way, there had to be some stream or lake somewhere that the Capitol had yet to touch.

There just had to be.

Cinder Newport, 14, District 12 Male.

Exhaustion was beginning to take over his body. His eyelids drooped and his legs were beginning to burn with soreness from walking nonstop for the past five or so hours. The backpack on his shoulders felt heavier than ever as if he were carrying the weight of the world on his back. Beside him, Jaxs looked equally if not more exhausted, barely able to keep up with Lux's fast pace.

"Lux, can we please stop?" Cinder questioned, his tired voice barely able to squeak out the words. "It's getting dark, and since we haven't found any tributes all day I don't think we'll find any at night."

His ally ignored him, continuing to trudge on. From all the extra sleep and nutritious she'd been eating, she had more energy than the two of them combined. On the other hand, Cinder and Jaxs both hadn't had a good night's sleep the past two nights and had only eaten the leftovers Lux didn't want. They were in awful shape, barely able to walk without falling to the ground.

"Lux, Jaxs and I are really tired," Cinder spoke again. "If we could just rest for one minute, then w—"

Lux cut him off. "No, we have to keep walking," she replied sternly. "We haven't found any tributes yet today, and if we don't find any, my whole plan will be ruined! Do you want that to happen Cinder? Do you want us to die because you were just a little bit tired?"

Cinder whimpered. "No," he squeaked. "But I can't see anything anymore."

"Then turn on your flashlight!" Lux roared, not stopping for even a second. Jaxs was beginning to fall behind, his steps slower than a sloth's.

Nodding his head quickly, Cinder grabbed his flashlight out of his pocket. He shined it in Jaxs' direction, trying to see the condition that his friend was in. From what he could see, it wasn't good.

"Need help?" Cinder asked, falling back to walk with Jaxs. "I can carry another bag if you are too tired."

Jaxs shook his head, giving Cinder a weak smile. "It's alright, I think I can manage. Thanks though."

"Yeah, no problem," Cinder replied. "Its what friends do."

The two walked in silence for a few minutes, listening to the soft sounds of the night. Currently, they were walking through a pine forest filled with glowing fireflies and chirping crickets. If he wasn't in a place where death was always on his mind, he could say that the night was actually quite calm and peaceful. A cool breeze blew through his rustled hair, sending a chill up his spine and waking him up a little bit.

"Faster!" Lux snapped when the two of them fell far enough behind her. He and Jaxs hurried his pace, desperate to keep up with Lux's standards.

"You know," Jaxs whispered after some time. "Sometimes I wonder if Lux has our best interests in mind. Sometimes it feels like she only cares about herself."

Cinder shook his head back and forth, yet inside, he knew what Jaxs was saying had some truth to it. "She's our ally," he defended her. "She has to care about us."

Jaxs shrugged. "Well, sometimes it feels like she doesn't."

"Her plan might not seem good right now, but she's getting us to the end," Cinder murmured. "If she's getting us to the end, she must care about us."

"I think she only cares about herself," Jaxs muttered. "If she really cared about us she'd let us stop and rest. We probably look like walking zombies right now, that's how tired we are. She's getting herself to the end, that's what she's doing."

Cinder didn't respond. Lux cared about them, she had to. She was their ally after all. Allies cared for and looked after each other. That's what always happened in the past. But in the past, no tribute had ever made their allies walk for hours on end without break. What if Lux was different?

"She's not," he whispered after some time. "She cares about us."

"Be quiet!" Lux hissed, shining her flashlight in their faces. "You two are louder than roaring bears. What are you trying to do, scare all the tributes off?"

Then, Cinder heard something rustle in the bushes beside him. He gulped, hoping it wasn't what he thought it was. Maybe if he ignored it whoever it was would just go away. Or maybe it wasn't even someone at all. It was probably just a stupid squirrel.

The bushes rustled again, and Cinder could barely breathe.

"What's that?" Lux asked, stopping for the first time in hours. "I heard something near you, Cinder. Do you see anything?"

Cinder stared back at her with wide eyes, afraid of what he would see if he looked. What if it was a tribute? He didn't need more blood on his hands, especially not after Abrielle and Nerida. And most of all, he just didn't want to die.

Another rustle.

"Well, is it anything?" Lux inquired, tilting her head to the side. Jaxs was huffing behind him, just thankful that they had finally stopped walking and he could have his break they so desperately wanted.

Tensing, Cinder angled his flashlight in the direction of the sound. The rustling stopped, and he found himself staring right into the eyes of the one person he hoped he'd never see in the arena again.

Arilli.

Arilli Carr, 15, District 12 Female.

For a moment, the world seemed to freeze around her. Nothing existed but her and Cinder, their wide and frightened eyes interlocked in a stalemate. Time stood still like an unmoving statue in a museum from an era long ago. She knew seconds were passing; they had to be, but each one felt longer than the next, an eternity plus some.

The bright light of Cinder's lantern almost blinded her. In the dark of the night, it seemed to be brighter than the blazing midday sun. She instantly became sick, her knees ready to buckle and give way beneath her. However, they didn't, her body unwavering. She wanted to run, to get as far away from this damned place as she could, yet her body wouldn't comply. It didn't move, stuck in what felt like quicksand surrounding her feet.

Run, he mouthed. She didn't budge.

"What the hell is in there Cinder?" Lux asked, craning her neck around to get a better view. Move, she told her body. Move. Yet, it didn't. She stood as still as she had a moment before, her body a statue.

She saw the light flicker off. "Nothing," Cinder replied a little too quickly, turning back towards Lux. "It was nothing."

"God, if you were staring at it like it was a two-headed monster, it wasn't nothing," Lux growled, pointing her flashlight in Arilli's direction.

"You're right!" Cinder exclaimed quickly. "You're right, you're right! It was a squirrel, that was all! I'm just surprised because I've never seen a squirrel before."

Lux rolled her eyes, and Arilli tried desperately to get her body to move. Still nothing. She just felt like she was going to puke.

"Don't lie to me Cinder," Lux scolded, her light resting on Arilli. "I know it's your little friend, I could see her from a mile away. I just wanted to know if you would tell me the truth or not, and apparently—"

"Arilli, run!" Cinder squeaked, interrupting Lux midsentence. His voice was shrill like a frightened puppy. "Go! Get out of here! She's going to kill you!"

With that, Arilli's body snapped back into reality. Seconds were seconds again, and she was no longer frozen in time. Reaching into her pocket, she gripped her knife tightly in her left hand. This was it. She was going to kill Lux. The devil was going to die, right here, right now. Cinder would help her—they'd defeat her together. Then she'd get her only friend back.

"What the hell are you doing?" Lux questioned, her jaw dropping. "She's your enemy, you need to kill her Cinder! It's part of my plan, the plan that will save us and get us to the end!"

Cinder ignored Lux and looked at her with wide eyes. "I said get out of here!" He yelped.

Arilli looked at Lux, then to Jaxs, then finally, back to Cinder. Jaxs, with a knife already in his hand, looked ready to send it hurling towards her. If she fought them right now, at least one of them would die, most likely Cinder. She couldn't let that happen.

Turning away from the trio, she broke into a sprint.

"Go after her!" Lux screeched, yet she heard no footsteps behind her. She only heard Cinder's sharp and forceful reply, echoing through the forest as she ran.

"No."

Jaxs Williamson, 18, District 5 Male.

"What do you mean, no?" Lux inquired, her lips curving into a frown.

"No," Cinder rebuked. "I'm not killing her."

"Why not?" Lux spat.

Jaxs stood behind the two of them, his eyes flickering between his alliance members and the running girl. She was getting further and further away, Lux would probably want him to go after her. Yet, he didn't want to. Like Cinder, he was done listening to Lux and her impossible demands.

"Friends don't kill other friends, but then again, I don't think you would know that," Cinder replied harshly. "With the way you treat me and Jaxs, I doubt you've ever had a real friend in your life."

Jaxs snickered. That was probably true.

"What did you just say to me?" Lux asked, her jaw dropping in shock.

Cinder grinned. "I said you never had any friends because you are a mean person who treats other people like they are nothing."

Lux scoffed. "Why would you say that? I care about you two very dearly, and I think I treat you fine."

Snorting, Jaxs rolled his eyes. "Sure, you do. Why don't you let us use your sleeping bag then?"

"Yeah, show how much you care about us and try sharing," Cinder growled. "Ever heard of it?"

"Shut up!" Lux roared. "Both of you! That damned girl is getting away and you two morons are standing here like it's social hour! Go after her, and don't come back until she is dead!"

"No," Cinder repeated. "I already told you I'm not killing her."

"Then as the leader and brains of this alliance, I demand you to kill her," she commanded.

Cinder narrowed his eyes at her. "You demand nothing," he challenged. "You aren't the boss of me."

"Kill her or you are out of the alliance!" Lux screeched, getting impatient now. Arilli was completely out of their sight now—enveloped by the darkness of the night.

"Fine, kick me out," Cinder spat, throwing his bow down at her feet. His ash-colored eyes sparkled with anger, an emotion Jaxs had yet to see from the young boy. "I'm done. I'm done listening to your orders, and I'm done being your personal servant. I treat you with the utmost kindness and respect but you just treat me like I'm trash. You act like you own me—like you are superior to me because you have an amazing brain and have a plan that will get us to the end. You tell us that you care about us, but someone who cares about me wouldn't steal my food and make me sleep on the dirt for two nights in a row while they get a warm sleeping bag and a comfortable pillow! You claim that you are my friend, but friends don't make other friends kill each other! And most of all, I'm done with you, because you are the first person I've ever met in my life who doesn't deserve my kindness."

Taking off the heavy backpack on his shoulders, Cinder flung it at Lux violently. "You can have all the food now for all I care! Take it, take it all, because even all the things in the world won't ever be enough to satisfy your greedy soul!"

Then, he whipped around and began to stomp off, leaving the two of them to wonder what had just happened.

Lux stared at Cinder, her jaw hanging open in awe. "You can't just walk off like that!" She shouted after Cinder. "Get back here, I order you!"

"You don't tell me what to do anymore!" Cinder screamed, turning back to face her. "I told you we are done!" Even through the dark of the night, Jaxs could see that his former ally's face was flushed red with anger, his body shaking with adrenaline.

Cinder kept walking. Lux grew more infuriated, her nostrils beginning to flare.

"Take one more step and I'll kill you!" Lux threatened. Cinder didn't stop, continuing to pad further and further away from them.

"I'd rather die than spend one more day in hell with you," Cinder retorted, taking one more step into the dark of the night.

"Then I guess you are going to die," Lux hissed. "Jaxs, kill the traitor."

Jaxs' gaze flickered to Cinder, then back to Lux. Cinder had stopped and turned around now, staring at him defiantly. Do it, his gaze challenged. Kill me and prove that you too are nothing more than Lux's mindless servant. Raising his knife, he aimed it right in between Cinder's glittering eyes. One throw and his former ally would be dead, his cannon sounding.

"Hurry up and kill him!" Lux demanded. "This doesn't have to take all night!"

Cinder blinked his ash-grey eyes. Behind his mask of confidence, Jaxs could see a flicker of fear in his gaze. He was scared, even if they didn't look it. They all were. Jaxs held his breath, his hand beginning to grow sticky with sweat.

Then, he took a deep breath in.

"Have no fears," he whispered to himself.

Then, he released.

Lux Ward, 14, District 5 Female.

She dropped to the ground as a silver blade twirled towards her face. Opening her mouth to scream, a frail and distressed squeak was the only thing that came out. Thankfully, her reflexes were fast enough and the knife sailed inches above her head, hitting a tree behind her with a thud.

"What in the world was that?" She screeched, her entire body shaking with fear. "Don't you have aim?"

Jaxs just stared back at her with wide eyes, stunned that he actually just did that. He opened his mouth to respond but only silence came out.

His face was paler than the moon, and she instantly knew that that knife had been no mistake. Her allies, obedient and mindless as they were, had finally turned on her. She had pushed too hard, and finally, they had snapped. Maybe she should have let them use her sleeping bag. Now it was her who looked pale, her face flushed the color of freshly fallen snow.

She felt like she was going to faint. The dark world began to spin around her. For the first time in the games, she felt afraid. With her protectors turned against her, who would be there to save her from the constant death encircling her? Certainly not herself, who was too unskilled with anything but her words, which now, had failed too.

"Yes," Jaxs replied softly after some time. "Yes, I do."

Lux squeaked, quickly picking up the backpack Cinder had thrown angrily at her minutes before. At the same time, Jaxs grabbed another knife, clutching it feverishly in his hand. Cinder stood a few feet away, his eyes as wide as a young child's.

"Don't move," Jaxs ordered, holding the knife threateningly in her direction. If Lux ran now, dropped the bag and sprinted into the dark woods behind her, how far would she get until she was caught? Not far. She was a slow runner, and Cinder, even in his current sleep-deprived state, could probably catch her with all the adrenaline flowing through his veins. Her best move was to succeed and hope that her allies had mercy.

She dropped the bag onto the floor, holding her hands up in the air. Then, she began to back slowly into the woods behind her.

"I said don't move!" Jaxs snapped. Lux stopped dead in her tracks, her face going paler.

Turning, Jaxs looked to Cinder. "It's your call buddy. What do we do with her?"

Cinder stepped forward, his eyes blazing with fury. Lux gulped. She had never seen Cinder look so angry—had she really made him this upset?

Grabbing the knife out of Jaxs' hand, Cinder took another step closer to Lux. She felt a chill run down her spine and looked at Cinder with wide eyes. Maybe, just maybe, she could convince him to let her go. He was a kindhearted kid, he wouldn't kill her, right? She hoped.

"Look—Cinder—I—" she stuttered.

The young boy cut her off. "Shut up," he spat. "I'm the one in charge now, I make the rules."

"Oka—"

"I said shut it!" Cinder yelled. Lux shivered as he took another step forward. The hand his knife was plastered in shook violently.

He took another step. Now he was only a sword length away, his blazing eyes glaring right into her own. She averted them, looking down at the hard ground. He wouldn't kill her. He wouldn't kill her. Yet, she didn't believe her own words.

Suddenly, she broke into a sprint, dropping her flashlight and running into the dark unknown. But before she could get very far, two hands pushed her down towards the hard earth.

For a second, she was falling, soaring through the crisp night air. She felt as free as a bird, but then it was over, and she was brought back to reality, hitting the ground with a loud thud. Her knees scraped against the forest floor, crimson blood beginning to ooze out.

She was flipped over onto her back, a pair of eyes staring down at her. However, where she expected to see hatred, she only saw confusion and hurt.

Cinder didn't speak, but his eyes said what words could not. Why did you do this? They asked. Why are you such a horrible person? Why did you hurt me?

"Please!" Lux cried out. "I don't want to die! I'll do anything, anything! I'll get as far away from you as possible, if you want you'll never have to see my face again! I just don't want to die! Please, don't kill me Cinder! I know you are a good person, you don't have to do this!"

"It's too late for you," Cinder growled, bending down and pressing the knife to her throat. Lux tried to scramble away, but Jaxs had come from behind, holding her body down against the ground.

"Please, I beg you!" Lux pleaded. "Don't kill me!"

Cinder scoffed. "You know who said those same exact words when I killed her? Abrielle. And you know why I remember that? Because I can't get her out of my head. She haunts me every night when I go to sleep, and every morning when I wake up—Nerida too!" Tears welled in his eyes, illuminated by the faint light of the flashlight a few feet away. "And you know why they were dead? Because you made me kill them! Their blood is in your hands too Lux!"

Now, silver droplets were rolling down Cinder's cheeks, falling on Lux's pale face. Lux was crying too—yet her tears weren't for Abrielle or Nerida. Although their deaths were her fault, she only saw them as two casualties on the road to her victory—two sacrifices that had to be made in order for her to win. Instead, she shed tears for herself—for her death that was about to happen.

"Please!" She yelped. "I don't want to die!"

Cinder pressed the knife down harder, drawing blood. His entire body was shaking, and her's was too. Lux screamed. But then, as soon as it had come the pressure was gone, and Cinder's frightened eyes were gazing back down at her sadly.

"But the killing ends here," Cinder declared, dropping the knife onto the floor. "I won't have any more blood on my hands, even if it's yours."

Lux clutched her neck, trying to stop the blood rushing out. Cinder hadn't inflicted a major wound—just enough to make her bleed and feel it.

"Let's go Jaxs," Cinder told his friend, helping him to his feet. Then the two set off, taking all the supplies and leaving Lux all by herself, completely exposed and unprotected.

The throne of glass had shattered, leaving a million broken pieces and no one to pick them up.

Alaric Pyre, 18, District 2 Male.

They were walking through a field of grass that stretched on for what seemed like forever until it faded away into the darkness. So far today, their tribute hunt had been unsuccessful and had only ended in sore legs and tired eyes. Still, Alaric and Eris marched on, hoping to lower the number of remaining tributes to ten by the time the capitol anthem played.

In the distance, a wolf howled. Alaric laughed, howling back at it.

"Stop it," Eris growled. "You'll scare off any tributes within a five-mile radius."

Rolling his eyes playfully, Alaric snorted. "Well, I haven't scared you off yet."

"Yet," Eris retorted, his lips beginning to curve into a smile. But then as soon as it came it disappeared, his solemn and serious ally returning to his normal self.

They walked for a little bit more, the long grass crunching under their feet. Another wolf howled. This one was louder than the last.

"Any bets on who we'll find first?" Alaric inquired, gripping his sword in his hand tightly as he heard the howling noise again.

Eris shrugged. "The girl from Three?" He echoed back.

Alaric nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, I think so too. I was watching her in training and she didn't look that strong at all. I'm surprised she's made it this far."

"Well, she did get a seven in training," Eris replied. "She has to have something that the gamemakers liked; she must have something that would let her survive this long."

He shook his head back and forth. "She looked weak and completely unskilled to me," Alaric pointed out. "I bet she slept with the gamemakers so they would give her that score."

In the distance, a silhouette of a building loomed. Alaric pointed his flashlight towards it. It was a barn—a perfect hiding spot for a meek tribute like the girl from Three.

Another wolf howled—this one even louder than the last. Turning around, Alaric pointed his flashlight in the direction of the sound. He expected to see nothing—just more darkness and grass. Instead, his beam of light shined right into the eyes of six hungry wolves, each of their mouth's frothing with a hunger for human flesh.

"Eris, behind you!" Alaric shouted as he unsheathed his sword. His ally quickly spun around, pulling out his kopis defensively. The pack of wolves began to surround them, their yellow eyes blazing brightly in the darkness.

"Crap," his ally breathed.

"Crap indeed," Alaric muttered, eyeing the wolves as they encircled the two of them. "Maybe I shouldn't have howled back. They probably thought I was some pretty she-wolf who wanted to be their mate. I mean, my howl was pretty realistic, r—"

"Shut up!" Eris hissed, cutting Alaric off. "If we don't talk, maybe they won't see us."

"And what kind of logic is that?" Alaric questioned, raising his voice to spite his ally. "I mean, it might work if you have a death wish, but if you want to live, I don't think your advice is all that great," he knew this wasn't the time for jokes, but they always made him feel a bit better in tough situations. It didn't make the threat of death feel as present if he was laughing about it.

"Stop it with your jokes and get behind me," Eris ordered.

Alaric smirked, not taking his eyes off of the growling wolves. "I don't want to look at your butt Eris if that's why you want me to get behind you."

"Just do it!" Eris shouted, angering one of the wolves. It leaped into the air, it's sharp fangs glittering in the faint moonlight. Alaric, mimicking the wolf's motions, started towards it, his sword angled right between its eye. Then, when the wolf was merely inches away, Alaric swiped his sword across its face, cutting into its flesh. The wolf let out a distressed yelp, falling backward. Its face dripped red with crimson blood. Then, chaos broke loose.

Three of the wolves leaped at Eris, while the other two leaped at Alaric. He felt a pair of strong jaws clench down on his left leg, digging deep into his flesh. He screamed in pain, his knees buckling beneath the heavy weight of his upper body. The second wolf bit as his arm, sending drops of blood splattering all over the wolf's furry face.

Taking his sword, Alaric slashed at the second wolf's chest, barely cutting through its flesh. The wolf leaped backward, narrowly dodging a critical blow. With his uninjured leg, Alaric kicked at the other wolf, hitting it square on the nose with his boot. The wolf skid backward and into the long grass.

Meanwhile, Eris was barely fending off the other three wolves, fresh wounds littering his body. One of his wolves had fled, yet the other two still fought, their eyes blazing with anger. Another had appeared, circling Eris hungrily. Alaric had a feeling that his ally would not be making it out alive, and once the wolves finished him off, they'd come for him next. There was no way he would be able to take on four wolves alone, let alone the two that he was dealing with now.

The first wolf leaped at him again, yet this time, he was ready. He rolled out of the way as the vicious animal landed on the patch of grass where he was previously kneeling. The wolf growled, jumping into the air. While the world was in mid-jump, Alaric slid forwards and raked his sword across the underside of the wolf's belly, opening up a bloody gash that spanned the entire length of the wolf's underside. The wolf howled and fell to the grass, limp as a ragdoll.

Coughing up blood, the career staggered to his feet, eyeing the second wolf that was glaring at him hungrily. Then, out of nowhere, another wolf leaped towards him, its jaws parted and fangs sharp. Alaric let out a shriek of surprise as it collided with his body, causing him to let go of his sword. It went flying across the grassy field, landing at the feet of the other wolf.

Shit. He hit the ground with a loud thud, the wolf on top of his back. It was tearing at his jacket, trying to get through to the flesh. Alaric growled, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small dagger. Then, he let out a roar and twisted around, plunging the dagger right into the wolf's throat.

The wolf slumped to the ground, its eyes glazing over. Pulling the bloody knife out of the wolf's throat, Alaric slowly staggered to his feet. Another wolf was eyeing him, his sword under the animal's legs. Alaric gulped. He couldn't fight the wolf with a dagger, let alone the other wolves once they finished off Eris.

His leg oozed with blood, so much so that it was painful to merely stand. A few feet away, Eris was a bloody mess, slashing his sword in the air, trying to keep the wolves at bay. It was somewhat working. He had killed one, and two more remained, plus the wolf that was eying Alaric hungrily. He looked back towards the wolf, then towards Eris once more.

Suddenly, to Eris' and the wolf's surprise, he broke into a sprint, leaving his ally behind to fight the three remaining wolves

"Alaric!" Eris screamed after him. "Alaric!"

He didn't turn back. Alaric wasn't a fool like some others at the academy had been. He knew when enough was enough; he knew when the battle was lost. He couldn't fight a trio of wolves with a dagger, especially when he was already injured. If he wanted to survive, he couldn't just fight. He needed to know when to run too, and that time was now.

"Alaric, get back here! Get back here you coward!" His ally shrieked. Alaric didn't look back, continuing to run. He did like Eris, yet when tasked with the choice to choose between his life and his ally's, he would choose his every time. This was a selfish game; only one person could win. He knew that all alliances were temporary, and when the time was right, they would come to an end. This was the end.

One of the wolves was chasing him, fast on Alaric's trail. He only had a minute or so before the wolf caught up to him, and he knew he'd have no choice but to fight.

"Alaric! Alaric!" His ally's voice was growing fainter, yet Alaric kept running. The wolf was only a few feet away now.

Suddenly, Alaric felt something strange crunch beneath his feet. Looking down, he saw a fishing net buried in the grass. He tried to jump, but it was too late. By the time he realized what had happened, he was already six feet in the air, his knife buried in the thick grass. A net surrounded him, held up by four strings connected to a tree branch a few feet higher. He was caught in a trap.

The wolf had finally caught up, standing feet below him on the grassy ground. Alaric swore under his breath. With no knife and nowhere to run, this was the end. He was going to die. Right here. Right now. This was it.

The wolf leaped into the air, it's fangs glistening in the faint moonlight. Alaric stayed completely silent, watching the wolf with wide eyes. There was no use shouting for help—no one would hear him anyway. Well, no one besides Eris, but that bridge was already burned.

Alaric braised himself for the pain that was about to come. However, he felt none. The wolf's hungry jaws narrowly missed his bloodied leg by a few centimeters before it went crashing back to the ground. The wolf tried again, leaping high into the air. However, it was no to avail, gravity bringing its furry body back to the ground again.

For what felt like hours, the wolf leaped into the air, narrowly missing Alaric's trapped body every time. Then, after it's thirtieth or so try, it let out a growl of disappointment and stalked away. Alaric breathed a sigh of relief.

"Take that wolf!" He howled after it. "No one beats Alaric Pyre!"

For a few minutes, the career sat in silence, the blood on his leg beginning to dry and turn brown. He waited for Eris' cannon, but he heard nothing. There was only silence, and the faint howl of one wolf in the distance.

Bored, he began to count in his head to pass time. One, two, three, four, five... No cannon. Six, seven, eight, nine, ten... No cannon. Fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty... No cannon. One hundred, two hundred, three hundred... No cannon. Could it be possible that his ally was still alive?

Then, he heard footsteps walk below him. With no flashlight, he couldn't see who or what it was. Yet, he had an idea, and when the person spoke, his suspicions were confirmed.

"Look at what the cat dragged in," Eris cooed, flickering on his flashlight and shining it right up at Alaric. Looking down, he saw the bruised body of his ally, who was covered in blood head to toe.

"You mean look at what the wolf dragged in," Alaric corrected, giving his ally a smirk.

Eris growled, drawing his sword. "Did I ask for your input?"

"No, but I gave it to you," Alaric retorted, still grinning. "By the way, you look a mess. Maybe you should consider taking a shower?"

"Shut up."

"Alright, well can you at least cut me down?" Alaric asked, tugging on the net like an impatient child. "I need to pee."

Eris laughed for the first time that night. "Actually, I was thinking about leaving you up there," he chuckled, brushing the blood off of his sword with his finger.

Alaric frowned. "I really need to pee though."

"Then I guess you'll just have to hold it."

Huffing, Alaric rolled his eyes. "But you can't just leave me hanging," he grumbled. "And the pun was intended if you caught that there. But that last pun was unintended, I didn't necessarily mean for you to catch that—"

"Just shut up!" Eris roared in frustration. "You are so annoying, you know that?"

Alaric grinned again. "I try."

Eris stomped his foot down on the ground, growing more impatient. "You are supposed to be begging for me to let you down, apologizing for leaving me back there! You are supposed to be crying, not laughing like this is some kind of joke!"

"Well, I think it's pretty funny," Alaric replied plainly.

"Oh my god!" Eris screamed. "You know what? If you think this is so funny, I wonder how funny you'll think me leaving you here is!"

"Well I already left you back there, so technically, you can't leave me because I already left you," Alaric chuckled. "Unless I really didn't leave you and you left me back there, which in that case y—"

"Shut it!" Eris roared. "As you know, I believe th—"

"An eye for an eye, your whole honor code, blah blah blah," Alaric interrupted, barely able to contain his massive grin.

"Shut up and just listen for once in your life!" Eris yelled. "So, as revenge, I'm going to leave you here for dead, like you left me back there. A—"

"But I already said that it's not physically possible for you to leave me because I already left you, s—"

"You know what? I'm done with this," he spat, throwing Alaric's sword onto the ground. "I'm just going to go. I was going to taunt you with your sword, but I'm done. I'm just done."

"Oh, you found my sword! How kind of you!" Alaric cheered, clapping his hands together delightedly. Eris growled, growing angrier with every passing second.

"I'm done," he spat, turning and walking into the darkness. "I hope you rot in hell Alaric."

"I can't wait for it!" Alaric yelled at him, but he was already gone, enveloped in the black of the night.

A/N: I still don't know how I managed to not kill anyone off in that chapter, goodness. Anyways, what did you all think? I've been waiting to write the Cinder/Lux/Arilli/Jaxs since the reapings, and now it's here! It turned out alright, for all the time I've had to think about it, it came out a little lackluster in my opinion, but I hope you all liked it none the less! Also, this chapter turned out a little bit longer then expected, so I had to bump Tesserae's scene to the next chapter but we haven't seen her in a while so we'll see her soon.

Please go vote in the poll if you haven't, and although my final eight is pretty set in stone, it might help me determine some things farther down the road like a winner, because goodness, I've had like ten people in mind for that slot already, and we are only at day 3.

Alliances:

Freedom: Jaxs, Cinder

Girls (Previously) on Fire: Tesserae, Grace

Confident and Have a Plan Now to Take Out an Alliance That no Longer Exists: Raleigh, Celeste

Loners: Eris, Alaric, Sereina, Lux, Arilli